Leeds Mind will be hosting a fire walk in Leeds University Union on 20 November in collaboration with one of the UK’s leading fire walk companies, UK Fire walk.
For their latest fundraiser, Leeds Mind will be encouraging participants to put mind over matter and brave the walk across a bed of red-hot embers.
The event comes as the charity attempts to bounce back from the effects of Covid-19.
“After a year really hit by the pandemic, compared to the income we had forecast at the beginning of April 2020, we had raised about 50%. So we are constantly trying to find new ways of fundraising”, said the charity’s fundraising team leader, Myriam Barker.
“We are trying to find events that people will find different, and different in different ways.
“And as most of our events are like running events or physical challenge events, we wanted to find a different event that people could take part in without having be able to train.”
Prior to the firewalk itself, participants will receive an hour training from UK Fire walk’s Scott Bell, a two-time Guinness World Record holder for the greatest fire walking distance, and internationally renown as one of the worlds leading experts on fire walking.
Having taken part in one of Scott’s events herself, Myriam Barker said: “Without giving too much away, Scott does an hour training, and in this hour training he shows us through different activities and exercises how strong you can be when you feel positive.
“Simple examples and simple exercises show that when you have a negative mindset you will not succeed.”
Mind Leeds are a charity focused on enabling people with mental health difficulties to flourish and creating conditions for better mental health for all.
The charity has worked to make the fundraiser as inclusive as possible, by choosing an easy to access venue with no stairs, so that anyone can come and support.
“It is the realisation of what you can actually do. Something that people think is impossible to do, they can actually achieve.”
To achieve their target of £150, registration for the fundraiser is placed at £15.
The event is open to all ages 12 and over, with parents or guardians’ permission is required for those under 16 years of age.
Each participant will receive training from UK Fire walk, a certificate upon completion of the challenge, a Leeds Mind t-shirt, and help and support through their fundraising journey from one of the charity’s expert fundraisers
The deadline for registration is 14 November 2021, to sign up contact fundraising@leedsmind.org.uk.